Faulty air con ruins Canadian couple’s Aus Open trip

TWO Canadian tourists have had their dream of coming to Melbourne for the Australian Open ruined after a faulty air conditioner destroyed their passport and tickets.

Canadian senior citizen Gordon Snyder and his partner are now stranded after they were told their passports were too heavily damaged to be able to fly out of the country.

Mr Snyder said after enjoying a full day of tennis and experiencing Melbourne, the elderly couple returned to their hotel in central Melbourne when disaster struck.

"As two Canadians travelling to Melbourne for the Australian Open, we were devastated when we woke up to find our packsack containing our tennis tickets and passports was saturated from water dripping from the hotel air conditioner," Mr Snyder said.

"Staying at (a hotel) near central Melbourne and the tennis, we enjoyed a full day of tennis before retiring to our hotel.

"Instead of another day of tennis and enjoying Melbourne, we found that my passport had been extremely damaged by the water."

Mr Snyder said the Canadian Embassy in Canberra advised the pair to apply for a new passport which can take up to 30 days.

The couple are scheduled to leave for Singapore tomorrow.

The Canadian national said he stands to lose thousands of dollars if the new passports cannot be processed in time.

Mr Snyder sent out a warning to all tourists, saying they need to protect their valuables.

"Visitors to Melbourne beware! I am a Canadian senior citizen and this is devastating to me," he said.